by Neal Colgrass, Newser

by Neal Colgrass, Newser

Alexander Betts Jr.'s heart, liver, kidneys, and lungs all went to recipients when he died following a suicide attempt last year. His eyes, however, did not-because Betts was gay, the Washington Post reports.

The 16-year-old's suicide attempt followed years of bullying in Pleasant Hill, Iowa, where he stood out for being half-black, gay, and having a cleft lip, said his mother, Sheryl Moore.

"It's the most painful thing I have ever been through in my entire life," she told the Des Moines Register of his death. "I would not wish that on my worst enemy."

But she experienced a new round of pain when his eyes were not accepted for donation.

"My initial feeling was just very angry because I couldn't understand why my 16-year-old son's eyes couldn't be donated just because he was gay," she told KCCI.

The reason: The FDA doesn't allow gay males who've had gay sex in the past five years to donate some tissues-eyes included-due to "an increased risk for exposure" to HIV and other diseases.

Critics say the policy is outdated, and note contradictions, like men who sleep with HIV-positive women being banned for just a year. The AMA has voted to end the ban, Time reports, and the FDA says it's open to changes-but Betts' eyes were rejected because his mother couldn't say for sure that he hadn't had gay sex.

Newser is a USA TODAY content partner providing general news, commentary and coverage from around the Web. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.